Staff Review

Pro X Fade Review
By: DJ Swayde (djSwayde@djbooth.net)

After using the Rane TTM 56’s legendary magnetic faders, I approached any other faders with caution. The Focus Fader V2 by Stanton was a great crossfader, but it was simply too loose for my tastes. The Vestax PCV faders were nice, but they felt a little too stiff for me, and were simply not as smooth as I wanted. I was also unsatisfied with Pioneer’s optical crossfader for the DJM-707/909 series because they also felt stiff, and I personally though that Penny and Giles faders had an unstable feeling to them. I guess you can just call me spoiled! I have yet to try out the CF-CC fader by Vestax as well as the Eternal Fader from Ecler, but I have heard great things about both. So, since I didn’t have the best experiences with the faders mentioned above, I approached Eclectic Breaks’ Pro X Fade crossfader with caution. DJs have raved about this crossfader and its customization options, but I was still unsure about whether to give it a try. However, I snagged one for cheap with a Vestax PMC-05ProII, so it couldn’t be helped.
The crossfader cannot be fitted into every mixer on the market, but as long as the mixer has a 45mm crossfader with a 50K ohm resistance value; it should work. However, there have been reported cases of people who have put the fader into mixers with different resistance values and had great success, but chances of this working are pretty slim. As far as I know, it should work on most Vestax PMC mixers, the Numark SM-1, many of Stanton’s SK mixers, and the Stanton’s SA series mixers (with a bit of modification). These faders are relatively easy to install. The Pro X Fade came pre-installed in the PMC-05ProII I bought, but it came with all the materials it was already packaged with, which consists of instructions, a small tub of Caig FaderLube, and a tool you can use for making the proper adjustments. After receiving the crossfader, I was surprised at how much the fader cap resembled Rane’s TTM 56 fader cap. After doing a side by side comparison, I determined that they were indeed the same except for the brown/green color scheme of the Pro X Fade cap compared to the Rane’s black/white colored fader cap. I tried to interchange the fader caps, but the Rane fader cap was difficult to fit onto the Pro X Fade fader stem, while the Pro X Fade’s fader cap literally scraped on the faceplate when fitted onto Rane’s fader stem. From this I determined that the fader stem is slightly longer than Rane’s. It also has an 8mm thick fader stem like the Rane’s, compared to the 4mm stems found in Vestax’s mixers, Stanton’s mixers, and Pioneer’s mixers. This gives it added stability and less chance of snapping like many do with the faders with 4mm thick stems.
Sure it looks great, but how does the fader feel? After making the adjustments that I wanted on the fader (which consists of lag and tension) with the provided tool, I was ready to give it a go. It did not take me long, but it may take a bit longer for you to get the adjustments exactly how you want them. Prepare to screw the fader on and off the mixer to keep adjusting it. However, once you get it how you want, you probably won’t take it out for a really long time. I screwed the fader back on, then the faceplate, and started doing a few chirps. I could not believe how great it felt! I had put some tension on it because I don’t like my faders completely loose, and it was really smooth. It didn’t feel as great as Rane’s faders, but I didn’t expect it to. It felt great in its own way. After lubing it up a bit, I continued to scratch with it. I couldn’t believe how great it felt, and I found myself using it more than the Rane’s faders after getting it. Am I going mad? Possibly, but the fader felt that great. And because it uses plastic conductive material rather than the carbon-based material found in regular faders, it lasts much longer and feels greater.
Eclectic Breaks took a lot of time to build this fader, and they did a great job. The fader feels great, is customizable, and best of all—it’s inexpensive. For such a great fader, I would expect to pay far more than $100. However, it retails at $99, and for that price, you get one of the best crossfaders in the market today. If you have a crossfader that’s starting to bleed and you want to replace it with something better, look into the Pro X Fade, if you get one, you will probably have made one of the best investments of your life

Features & Specs

Advanced 100% Conductive Plastic Technology
Unlike other fader manufacturers, we use true 100% conductive plastic tracks giving the fader a longer life as well as substantially reducing the bleeding of sound after constant usage.

Tension Torque Control
Allowing the DJ to physically change the feel of the fader to suit their needs… Whether it is a smooth, solid feel for that secure long mix or a very loose feel for the scratch DJ's intensive on-off cutting technique.

Customisable Cut-in Point
Using the easy accessible adjustable cut-in rotaries, the DJ can adjust the cut-in point to enable an instant on-off switch feel or gradual volume increase mode.

Interchangeable Mixer Interface
Using the correct connectors and face-plate, the DJ can Interface with many different analogue and digital mixer architectures from a large number of the most popular manufacturers.

Double Wide Fader Stem
Due to the fact that many cross-fader stems snap off after intense usage or whilst in transit, we have developed a wider stem to counteract this problem.

Professional DJ Endorsement
The Pro-X-Fade is fully endorsed and supported by many undisputed champion DJ's and Venues around the world.

Quality Packaging & Design
Eye-catching design and ergonomic packaging that projects the sense of quality and professionalism you can expect from this product.